Europe

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis used his Christmas message Sunday to lament the “icy winds of war” buffeting humanity and to make an impassioned plea for an immediate end to the fighting in Ukraine, a 10-month-old conflict he decried as “senseless.”

At noon local time, Francis delivered the traditional “Urbi et Orbi″ (Latin for ”’to the city and to the world”) speech from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Tens of thousands of tourists, pilgrims and residents of Rome crowded into St. Peter’s Square to listen to the pontiff and to receive his blessing.

PARIS (AP) — Members of France’s Kurdish community and anti-racism activists joined together in mourning and anger on Saturday in Paris after three people were killed at a Kurdish cultural center in an attack that prosecutors say was racially motivated.

The shooting in a bustling neighborhood of central Paris also wounded three people, and stirred up concerns about hate crimes against minority groups at a time when far-right voices have gained prominence in France and around Europe in recent years.

BOBRYTSIA, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainians usually celebrate Christmas on Jan. 7, as do the Russians. But not this year, or at least not all of them.

Some Orthodox Ukrainians have decided to observe Christmas on Dec. 25, like many Christians around the world. Yes, this has to do with the war, and yes, they have the blessing of their local church.

The idea of commemorating the birth of Jesus in December was considered radical in Ukraine until recently, but Russia’s invasion changed many hearts and minds.

MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/: Dmitry Rogozin, former chief of the Russian space agency Roscosmos who is now heading the Tsar’s Wolves team of military advisers, has sustained concussion and a shrapnel wound above his right scapula, Rogozin’s aide told reporters on Saturday.

"Dmitry Olegovich has a penetrating wound - an 8 by 6 mm metal splinter pierced above his right scapula next to the spine. Miraculously, it did not hit his lung. Moreover, he had a concussion. There are no other wounds," he said, adding that former Roscosmos chief is to undergo surgery in hospital near Moscow.

MINSK, December 24. /TASS/: Minsk is hopeful that at the end of the outgoing year the amount of Belarusian exports to Russia will be about $22-23 billion, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said on Saturday.

MOSCOW, November 24. /TASS/: Director General of the Admiralty Shipyards Alexander Buzakov has died at the age of 66, the United Shipbuilding Corporation said on Saturday.

"The United Shipbuilding Corporation, the Admiralty Shipyards and the entire national shipbuilding industry have suffered an irreparable loss, as Alexander Sergeevich Buzakov, Director General of the Admiralty Shipyards, passed away at the age of 66," the corporation said.

MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/: Russia was able to keep the fuel price down in 2022, as gasoline prices went up by only 0.6% and diesel prices grew by 8.4% with inflation at 11.1%, and in 2023 Russia intends to avoid an increase in the price above inflation, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in an interview with TASS on Saturday.

LONDON, Dec 23 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Passengers at UK airports on Friday faced long delays as Border Force officers walked out in the latest of a string of strikes by public sector workers over pay.

The action follows stoppages this week by nurses and ambulance workers, angered by the government’s refusal to increase pay following years of wage stagnation and a cost of living crisis that has seen inflation running at nearly 11 percent.

KYIV, Dec 24 (Reuters) - A Russian strike on Ukraine's recently recaptured city of Kherson killed at least 10 people, wounded another 58 and left bloodied corpses on the road, authorities said, in what Kyiv condemned as wanton killing for pleasure.

Fresh from a trip to the United States seeking weapons to resist the 10-month Russian invasion, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy published photos showing streets strewn with burning cars, smashed windows and bodies.

PARIS, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Charles Sobhraj, a convicted killer who police believe killed more than 20 western backpackers on the "hippie trail" through Asia in the 1970s and 1980s, returned to France on Saturday after nearly two decades behind bars in Nepal.

Nepal's Supreme Court ordered the release of Sobhraj, known as the "bikini killer" in Thailand, and 'The Serpent" for his evasion of police, on Wednesday citing his advanced age and health.